Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Quite a number of member states make the opposite point. They have indicated that if they agreed to Eurodac, it would be important that they could have access for law enforcement agencies. As I stated, there are quite a few safeguards, and we are talking about terrorism and serious crime. The other databases must be used first and a case must be made, so automatic access is not granted. There are quite a few safeguards. Quite a number of member states wanted this and felt it a critical process to manage international terrorism and deal with security risks. The Deputy is correct in that one must always be conscious of the data protection issues and individual rights. There is a review mechanism built in and at that point it would be important to see how the system had been used by law enforcement. All the conditions can be reviewed, as well as the kinds of cases involved.